Antoinette LaFarge: Digital Aesthetics

DIGITAL AESTHETICS: Studio Art 175: Projects

PROJECT 1: Random Access

The goal of this project is to create a web-based artwork that includes random images. The project must also include some text, which can be in the form of either images or plain text, or both. You will get an HTML template that has a Javascript random function to work with; this template is only a starting point, and you can vary it as much as you wish.
Requirements, guidelines, and things to think about:

Assemble at least 10 and no more than 25 elements from your own work. Some of these can be similar, but others must be very different from each other. These elements can be drawings, paintings, photos or details of any of these; texts; video clips; sound clips; or a combination. There must be at least one textual element. Time-based elements should be no longer than 5 seconds each (note that you may have to change the IMG tag for these to an EMBED tag).
The text element can be a text image or plain text written into the html page; or both.
No more than one web page is necessary for this project; more are optional.
Your images MUST be named with numbers, e.g. 1.jpg, 2.jpg, 3.jpg, and so on, or the Javascript will not work.
You can vary the size of your images using the "WIDTH=" and "HEIGHT= " attributes that are included in the Javascript/HTML code.
You can change other aspects of the layout by altering the attributes of the included TABLE tag, the BODY tag, and by the use of other HTML tags with which you are familiar.
Note that the random images on your web page will not change automatically; you must use the browser's "refresh" or "reload" button. Alternatively, you can try including local links on the page, as these should also cause the page to reload (i.e. the A tag with the NAME attribute).

What ideas are you trying to express, and how does your page design and choice of images support these ideas?
What does the randomness represent or signify within the piece?
How does time operate in this piece?
What kinds of choices (if any) does this piece offer the viewer?
What is the relationship of your images to each other and to the text?
If you have included multiple groups of random images, are some groups more random than others? If there is an image of the page that is not random (fixed), what is its relationship to all the other elements on the page?

If you need to re-download the template for this project and have lost the FTP address, email me.

PROJECT 3: Panopticon Game

For this project, you will design a game that incorporates some of the central ideas behind Jeremy Bentham's "Panopticon," which is a circular prison designed to ensure maximum surveillance of the prisoners by an invisible guard. Note that although this game is based on the structure of the Panopticon, your game does not have to have anything obvious to do with prisons or prisoners. To keep this doable in the time we have, I recommend focusing on something like a card game or a board game or a rule-based musical score, or a rule-based role-playing game.
Your first step to is to read about the Panopticon.
(You may also want to follow some of the links on this page, such as the link to a discussion of Foucault's analysis of the Panopticon.)
Your game must include the following features:

1. The Panopticon's basic structure is "one against many", guard against prisoners. Thus, your game should include a master player with special powers, functions, or responsibilities; and a group of 2-4 ordinary players who are in some way opposed to the master player. Examples of such a one-against-many structure exist in many games-- for example, the card game Twenty-One (dealer and players) and Dungeons and Dragons (dungeonmaster and players).
2. The Panopticon isolates prisoners from each other, but it is to their advantage if they can circumvent this isolation. Thus, your game rules should be designed so the ordinary players are initially isolated from each other (do not share information) but can eventually find ways to cooperate with each other in the game, or share information, or in some way work together (team up, join together).
2a. A Panopticon prisoner would normally never work with the guard; one who did so would be seen as betraying the other prisoners. Thus, if you choose to give ordinary players the ability to work with the master player in your game, there should be both a reward and a penalty for this "betrayal".
3. The Panopticon is designed so that the prisoners are never sure when they are being observed by the guard. Thus, your game rules should be designed so that the master player can "observe" (gain information from or control) the other players in an unpredictable manner-- perhaps by the use of dice rolls or other random functions; or by changing the rules at key points in the game.
4. You are welcome to include other elements of the Panopticon in your game if you wish to. For example, its cellular structure could be worked into a maze-like game; or the general game board design might be circular; or the idea of "watching" might be used to determine when certain cards were face up or face down.
5. I leave the question of how to win/lose/draw up to you. However, the way the master player wins should be different from how the ordinary players win since the master player and the ordinary players are opposed to each other.

Bring your game design ideas to class on Tuesday, when we will discuss them. I do not plan to to change the due date on this project (next Thursday), so plan to make as much progress as possible by Tuesday.

PROJECT 4: Generative Artwork

For this project, you will create your work by evolving a set of initial images using rules of transformation that you will develop. Following the ideas used in the creation of artificial life, the rules will loosely imitate the processes by which organisms change from generation to generation, including mutation (random transformations), sex (swapping information between parents), and dead ends (culling). Your final work will consist of an entire family tree.
Project Guidelines:

You must begin with at least one parent image, but it will be simpler to work with more (2-3; more than that will likely become confusing).
Recommended parent objects include those with strong outline and distinctive forms, such as simple drawings and moderately complex shapes. Most photographs will probably not work as well as drawings for this project.
Your final presentation should be in print form, and at least 11 x 17 inches (tabloid format). You can print either in the Studio Art print room (talk to Rudy Vega) or at Kinko's. Before you begin, think about how to size your objects so that you can fit all your generations on the final printout.
You must make 10 generations of the family tree. Each generation should be larger than the last; the final generation should have around 20 "children" in it.
It is recommended that you work in Photoshop for this project. Illustrator is also possible. You may want to do preliminary work outside the computer.
Think about parallels with animal evolution as you understand it. For example, what kinds of mutations will be beneficial, and what kinds will be dead ends (unable to reproduce)? When your image-organisms "have sex", how much information do they trade, and do they trade equally? (humans trade half their genetic material, and the trade is equal). How might the idea of recessive and dominant genes work in your family tree (this is an optional idea to explore). How might you bring new genes into the tree (immigration)?
In thinking about how your rules of transformation work from generation to generation, bear in mind the many transformative operations that artists work with every day, such as mirroring, inversion, duplication, splitting, rotation, layering, opacity, scale, distortion, contrast, and color shifts (and don't forget that you can work with hue, saturation, and value as separate transformations). Also don't forget that your rules can allow multiple transformations in some generations (sex + mutation).
Here are two examples of the a-life artist William Latham's work using computer algorithms to evolve his images. On the left is one of his family trees; on the right is one of his evolved images (from a different lineage).

	DIGITAL AESTHETICS: Studio Art 175: Projects
	PROJECT 1: Random Access
	The goal of this project is to create a web-based artwork that includes random images. The project must also include some text, which can be in the form of either images or plain text, or both. You will get an HTML template that has a Javascript random function to work with; this template is only a starting point, and you can vary it as much as you wish. Requirements, guidelines, and things to think about: Assemble at least 10 and no more than 25 elements from your own work. Some of these can be similar, but others must be very different from each other. These elements can be drawings, paintings, photos or details of any of these; texts; video clips; sound clips; or a combination. There must be at least one textual element. Time-based elements should be no longer than 5 seconds each (note that you may have to change the IMG tag for these to an EMBED tag). The text element can be a text image or plain text written into the html page; or both. No more than one web page is necessary for this project; more are optional. Your images MUST be named with numbers, e.g. 1.jpg, 2.jpg, 3.jpg, and so on, or the Javascript will not work. You can vary the size of your images using the "WIDTH=" and "HEIGHT= " attributes that are included in the Javascript/HTML code. You can change other aspects of the layout by altering the attributes of the included TABLE tag, the BODY tag, and by the use of other HTML tags with which you are familiar. Note that the random images on your web page will not change automatically; you must use the browser's "refresh" or "reload" button. Alternatively, you can try including local links on the page, as these should also cause the page to reload (i.e. the A tag with the NAME attribute). What ideas are you trying to express, and how does your page design and choice of images support these ideas? What does the randomness represent or signify within the piece? How does time operate in this piece? What kinds of choices (if any) does this piece offer the viewer? What is the relationship of your images to each other and to the text? If you have included multiple groups of random images, are some groups more random than others? If there is an image of the page that is not random (fixed), what is its relationship to all the other elements on the page? If you need to re-download the template for this project and have lost the FTP address, email me.
	PROJECT 3: Panopticon Game
	For this project, you will design a game that incorporates some of the central ideas behind Jeremy Bentham's "Panopticon," which is a circular prison designed to ensure maximum surveillance of the prisoners by an invisible guard. Note that although this game is based on the structure of the Panopticon, your game does not have to have anything obvious to do with prisons or prisoners. To keep this doable in the time we have, I recommend focusing on something like a card game or a board game or a rule-based musical score, or a rule-based role-playing game. Your first step to is to read about the Panopticon. (You may also want to follow some of the links on this page, such as the link to a discussion of Foucault's analysis of the Panopticon.) Your game must include the following features: 1. The Panopticon's basic structure is "one against many", guard against prisoners. Thus, your game should include a master player with special powers, functions, or responsibilities; and a group of 2-4 ordinary players who are in some way opposed to the master player. Examples of such a one-against-many structure exist in many games-- for example, the card game Twenty-One (dealer and players) and Dungeons and Dragons (dungeonmaster and players). 2. The Panopticon isolates prisoners from each other, but it is to their advantage if they can circumvent this isolation. Thus, your game rules should be designed so the ordinary players are initially isolated from each other (do not share information) but can eventually find ways to cooperate with each other in the game, or share information, or in some way work together (team up, join together). 2a. A Panopticon prisoner would normally never work with the guard; one who did so would be seen as betraying the other prisoners. Thus, if you choose to give ordinary players the ability to work with the master player in your game, there should be both a reward and a penalty for this "betrayal". 3. The Panopticon is designed so that the prisoners are never sure when they are being observed by the guard. Thus, your game rules should be designed so that the master player can "observe" (gain information from or control) the other players in an unpredictable manner-- perhaps by the use of dice rolls or other random functions; or by changing the rules at key points in the game. 4. You are welcome to include other elements of the Panopticon in your game if you wish to. For example, its cellular structure could be worked into a maze-like game; or the general game board design might be circular; or the idea of "watching" might be used to determine when certain cards were face up or face down. 5. I leave the question of how to win/lose/draw up to you. However, the way the master player wins should be different from how the ordinary players win since the master player and the ordinary players are opposed to each other. Bring your game design ideas to class on Tuesday, when we will discuss them. I do not plan to to change the due date on this project (next Thursday), so plan to make as much progress as possible by Tuesday.
	PROJECT 4: Generative Artwork
	For this project, you will create your work by evolving a set of initial images using rules of transformation that you will develop. Following the ideas used in the creation of artificial life, the rules will loosely imitate the processes by which organisms change from generation to generation, including mutation (random transformations), sex (swapping information between parents), and dead ends (culling). Your final work will consist of an entire family tree. Project Guidelines: You must begin with at least one parent image, but it will be simpler to work with more (2-3; more than that will likely become confusing). Recommended parent objects include those with strong outline and distinctive forms, such as simple drawings and moderately complex shapes. Most photographs will probably not work as well as drawings for this project. Your final presentation should be in print form, and at least 11 x 17 inches (tabloid format). You can print either in the Studio Art print room (talk to Rudy Vega) or at Kinko's. Before you begin, think about how to size your objects so that you can fit all your generations on the final printout. You must make 10 generations of the family tree. Each generation should be larger than the last; the final generation should have around 20 "children" in it. It is recommended that you work in Photoshop for this project. Illustrator is also possible. You may want to do preliminary work outside the computer. Think about parallels with animal evolution as you understand it. For example, what kinds of mutations will be beneficial, and what kinds will be dead ends (unable to reproduce)? When your image-organisms "have sex", how much information do they trade, and do they trade equally? (humans trade half their genetic material, and the trade is equal). How might the idea of recessive and dominant genes work in your family tree (this is an optional idea to explore). How might you bring new genes into the tree (immigration)? In thinking about how your rules of transformation work from generation to generation, bear in mind the many transformative operations that artists work with every day, such as mirroring, inversion, duplication, splitting, rotation, layering, opacity, scale, distortion, contrast, and color shifts (and don't forget that you can work with hue, saturation, and value as separate transformations). Also don't forget that your rules can allow multiple transformations in some generations (sex + mutation). Here are two examples of the a-life artist William Latham's work using computer algorithms to evolve his images. On the left is one of his family trees; on the right is one of his evolved images (from a different lineage).